Thinking and playing

Yesterday Nick was feeling better, back to his normal sparkley self, and it even more normal. The weather decided to play "let's be threatening" all day , so we broke out the Wii and spent almost two hours playing cycling races, archery and dog frisbee. Dark ominous clouds kept rolling in, but the rain never happened. Nick gets really freaked out at storms( he thinks lightning is going to fry him or every wind is a tornado) and thunder is a real sensory overload. All things considered with how he has felt the last while, I decided it would be best not to push and just use this Wii time to trasition back into the world of more activity.Would you believe that you can actually break a sweat doing the cycling races and it gets your heart rate up ??? It's true.

We caught a few more shows on The Cooking Channel, and I am finding that even the thought of some of the dishes prepared by people who go "BAM", are enough to make my stomach flip. Flavor should be the star, and the way those flavors dance and play together the feature. Not fat! While fat is important to your health, to have it as the star ingredient dulls the pallet. Add a stick of butter and you have herbs and seasonings trapped because they have been dulled. Add lard and nothing can mingle. A pinch of salt turns up the volume on some flavors , but it quickly reaches a level where it bullies them into quiet submission. Cooking is an art, and like all arts , you can either mass produce it so that it becomes as common as a smiley face . Or you can take time and create something that is a masterpeice. I think when you experience a masterpiece all of your senses come alive, drink it in and you are soon deeply satisfied. When all you see is smiley faces, your senses become dulled and you over-consume simply to feel something. I believe Nick is understanding this as well, and he gets excited at people who do things like roast beets, shave carrots into simple salads and combine things like oranges and basil. He kept asking if we could make this and that, and it inspired me for a whole new idea. This Saturday when we go shopping , abandon the menu plan and the lists. Simply go and buy food- whatever is in season, whatever looks vibrant and whatever is on sale. Could be suicide, but I suspect that it is going to be a heck of a lot of fun !

For dinner I tried a new to me recipe for yellow squash. In this area yellow squash becomes as abundant as zucchini this time of year ( and it is going to pick up production even more in the next 3 weeks), and there is a rush to find ways to use it.It can be used in any recipe calling for zucchini, as well as eaten raw. I honestly prefer the taste of the yellow squash over the zucchini.To me it has a mild buttery taste. This recipe combines that buttery flavor with basil and lemon, which seems to remind me of afternoons as a kid running through a lawn sprinkler on a hot summer day

Summer Squash Saute- serves 4

2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
salt to taste
1/4 cup basil leaves, thinly sliced( or 2 T dried basil)
1 pound yellow squash ( or zucchini, pattypan or a combination of all 3)
fresh ground black pepper
juice of one lemon

Trim ends of squash, cut lengthwise and then into half moons about 1/8 inch thick. Heat oil in a skillet, place the squash in and season with salt and pepper. Saute till the squash is slightly tender and slightly golden brown. Add lemon juice and remove from heat. Sprinkle with basil and serve.